VR/AR, Blockchain, Bitcoin, Artificial Intelligence, The Internet of Things and Montana

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You Are Invited as University of Montana Students Compete at the 37th Annual Ruffatto Business Startup Challenge 4/17

The Ruffatto Startup Challenge – sponsored by Ontra Marketing Group, Bill and Cheryl Papesh and the Folley Family Foundation – provides a platform for aspiring entrepreneurs to showcase their business ideas. Students compete for $50,000 in prize money, which reflects the strong support of businesses, organizations and individuals dedicated to fostering entrepreneurship across the state.

Great Falls Development Alliance First Quarter 2026 Index – Numbers to Celebrate

GFDA is a certified Community Development Financial Institution and a 501(c)3 charitable organization. High Plains Financial is a certified Community Development Corporation that offers SBA 504 loans statewide. GFDA and High Plains Financial are Equal Opportunity Employers, Lenders and Providers.

Massive 5,600-Worker Man Camp Proposed For Cheyenne, Wyoming’s South Side

Iron Guard Housing plans a large modular camp to house thousands of workers for major projects, raising concerns about crime and infrastructure. Local officials weigh the benefits of centralized housing against community impact as public hearings approach.

Microsoft will triple its data center footprint in Cheyenne, Wyoming with a 3,200-acre land purchase.

The expansion raises important questions about infrastructure, resource management, and community impact that Montana businesses will want to watch closely.

$970,000 in Big Sky Film Grant Funding Awarded to 22 Filmed-in-Montana Productions

Roughly 124 applicants requested over $13 million in grants this year.

Earbuds That See

Researchers yesterday presented a novel wireless earbud-camera system that lets users talk with an artificial intelligence model about what they’re seeing. 

New Study Finds Traditional TV Ads Overvalued by 55 Percent

Researchers using smart TV data reveal that conventional ratings overstate ad effectiveness, with viewer response peaking within two days. Montana businesses may need to rethink advertising strategies to improve targeting and efficiency.

GFDA Upcoming Business Trainings and Events

Whether you’re just getting started, looking for new customers, wanting to grow sales through e-commerce, or focusing on workforce. We can help in your success!

What company has 400+ former employees who have founded their own companies?

Although these achievements have allowed SpaceX to reshape humanity’s journey into orbit in its own image, they overshadow what could be the company’s most impressive, and most iterable, legacy: A growing universe of former employees have founded companies dedicated to solving the next generation of very hard engineering challenges.

My provocative proposal: Want a roadway safety movement? Ditch the engineers.

Known as “plangineers,” these urban planners combine their planning skills with engineering and project management expertise that is learned on the job. While plangineer may not be a job title for your organization to hire or bill, it is a reminder that engineering skills can be taught and that all the practitioners who speak the language of roadway safety in the built environment can adapt their knowledge to meet engineering needs.